Candi Sari is located about 130 meters north east from Kalasan temple. It is strongly suggested that the original function of this building was a monastery (vihara) . Historians believe that this temple was built around the same time as Candi Kalasan. According to an inscription dated 778 AD, Maharaja Tejapurnapana Panangkaran was persuaded by a guru to erect a temple (Candi Kalasan) devoted to goddess Tara with a buddhist monastery.

1. What to see

Sari temple was a two story building with wooden beams, floors, stairs completed with windows and doors; all from organic materials which now are decayed and gone. Structure of the temple with its three parts; the base, the body, and the roof matches Buddhist cosmology.

1.1. Outer walls

Figures of Tara and Bodhisattvasare arranged in two rows on the outer wall. Pairs of Kinnara figures adorn window frames, these heavenly creatures are commonly displayed with upper part of human and lower part of bird. But here they are depicted as winged deity figures similar to common depiction of angels.

1.2. Chambers

It is believed that upper rooms were used by the monks as living areas or places for meditation, while the lower rooms were places of worship. Arched niches adorned with Kala-heads can be found in any of the lower three rooms.

2. When to see

Candi Sari is open daily from 8am – 5pm.

3. Location

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4. How to get there

If travelling on a package tour to Java, it might contain a few temples that are close to world-famous Prambanan temples.

If staying on the island of Bali, you can consider to take a one-day Yogyakarta guided trip. These trips usually include the famous Borobudur and Prambanan temples along with the sights of Yogyakarta. You'll arrive at the airport of Denpasar very early in the morning, fly to Yogyakarta with a local Indonesia flight (Lion Air / Garuda), enjoy the above mentioned monuments and finally get back to your hotel in Bali in the evening. It is important to know that you have to purchase the airplane tickets in advance, but it might be difficult, since Indonesian air flights only accept VISA cards issued in a few countries. Lion Air simply doesn't accept any European or US card, Garuda only accepts cards issued in Western Europe. If you are lucky, you can purchase your tickets in cash a few days before your excursion in a nearby country like Singapore.

It is not recommended to drive on your own in Indonesia due to the general negligance of driving rules. Singposts are written with Latin alphabet, but it might be difficult to find remote places on your own. The best solution is to rent a car with a driver for an entire day.

5. Where to stay

There are hotels in Yogyakarta for every budget: from backpackers to luxuary 5* hotels.

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Vihara is the Sanskrit term for a Buddhist monastery. It originally meant "a secluded place in which to walk", and referred to "dwellings" or "refuges" used by wandering monks during the rainy season. The northern Indian state of Bihar derives its name from the word "vihara".

Tara

Tara is a female Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism who appears as a female Buddha in Vajrayana Buddhism. She is known as the "mother of liberation", and represents the virtues of success in work and achievements.

Bodhisattva

In Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is an enlightened existence. It is anyone who, motivated by great compassion, has generated bodhicitta, which is a spontaneous wish to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. Tara is a female Boddhisattva.

Kinnara

In Buddhist mythology and Hindu mythology, a kinnara is a paradigmatic lover, a celestial musician, half-human and half-horse (India) or half-bird (south-east Asia). Kinnaris are the female counterpart of Kinnaras.

Kala-Makara arch

A type of decoration that frames the doorways and niches of temples in Java. Two naga (water-snake) bodies form the sides of the arch, whose ends rest upon outward-turning Makara (half animal, half fish sea creature) heads. The top of the arch, from which the serpent bodies issue, is a Kala-head (god of death).

The arch symbolizes a rainbow, which connects the mundane world of the earth to the divine world of the sky.